Adjustable mail box



March 24, 1931. w. F WEMHOENER ADJUSTABLE MAIL BOX Filed May 17, 1928 lAA/ENTOR WILLIAM E WEMHOENE R i 15 stock overhead in each tvpe of box.

Patented Mar. 24, 1931 WILLIAM F. WEMHOENER, F LOUIS, MISSOURI ADJUSTABLE MAIL BOX Application filed May 17 1928. 1 Serial No. 278,420.

My invention relatesto improvements in mail boxes and has among its objects the production of such devices, which shall be simple, convenient, sturdy, reliable, economical, and

5 eflicient and satisfactory for use wherever found applicable.

As heretofore constructed, it has been necessary to make such a box for a certain depth or thickness of wall, each box being intended for this given wall thickness and for no other. Obviously, the manufacturers of such boxes would have to make up a fairly large seriesof such boxes for the usual range of wall thickness, thereby increasing is @ne of the principal objects of my invention is to design a: mail box' which shall be so constructed that the single box may be installed in walls of varyingthicknesses, without out 29 ting off or adding anything to the box struc ture, whereby the same box may be built into a premises having, say, a six-inch wall, or into one having a sixteen-inch wall.

Many other objects and advantages of the construction herein shown and described will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains, from the disclosures herein given.

To this end, my invention consists in the 30 novel construction, arrangement, and combination of parts herein shown and described. and more particularly pointed out in the claims. 7

. In the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate like or corresponding parts throughout Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved box as installed in a wall;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of said box at some intermediate position of adjustment;

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view, showing the box installed in a wall of a thickness in termediate the smallest and largest wall thickness for which the box is intended; and

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the box.

In the drawings, wherein I have illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention, V indicates the wall of a house or any other premises in which it is desired to install a mail box, the thickness of the wall varying between the ordinary ranges of building construction, and generally between siX' inches .and sixteen inches thickness, the former being for frame structures.

p The mail box comprises three main members, these being the front chamber memer 1 the rear chamber member 2, and the conduit for interconnecting the two to form a continuous chambered passage through which the mailmay pass, said conduit preferably being made of two or more parts or elements 3, each trough or channel-shaped in lateral cross-section.

The front chamber member 1 is of tubular cross-section, somewhat as shown, and may havea more or less ornamental plate 4 at its forward end, this face plate having the mailreceiving opening 5 therein, communicating with the interior of the chambered member, and also having"aname-receiving opening. etc.. thereon.- l

. The rear end mem er 2 is also tubular and.- rn'ay have an outlet. door 6 hinged or other,- wise suitably associated therewith, and through which the contents of the box may be removed. g

Between these two. end members there is, aconnecting member comprising the multiparttrough member 3, hereinbefore mentioned. Each of the elements of this connecting member isof the trough or channel shaped lateral cross-section, somewhatin the shape of the letter U, the parallel sidewalls of one of the channels preferably overlying theexterior sidewalls of the other channel members. One end of each of the channels is hinged or pivot-ally secured to the adjacentedge of the front member 1 and the opposite end is similarly hinged to the adjacent edge of the rear member 2. so that when said channelslare mountedin place as shown in the drawings, the side walls of the elements will overlap one another, whereby the tube formed by said pair of elements will always be substantially closed about the'perimeter.

R'lhe pair of hinge axes at each end is not in vertical alignment, but on the contrary, one axis of each pair is a suitable distance forwardly (or 'rearwardl'y, depending upon which direction is considered forward 01 rearward) of the other axis of the pair. The front and rear edges of the box will always be in vertical planes, as shown, in all positions of adjustment.

When the mail box is installed in a wall of the minimum thickness, as indicated in heavy lines in Figure 1, the channel elements will be substantially vertical, the front and rear end members 1 and 2 being at their maximum vertical separation. I

As the channel elements are moved slidably past one another, longitudinally relatively of each other, to their position as indicated in the dotted lines in Figure 1, the front and rear ends 1 and 2 of the box, will be at their farthest longitudinal or horizontal separation, and the Vertical separation will be at the minimum amount.

lVhere the wall -Wis of a thickness intermediate that shown by the dotted or the full lines in Figure 1, the box is adjusted by sliding the channel sections past one another-to some intermediate position as indicated in either Figures 2 or 3, the front and rear edges of the box always lying in parallel vertical planes so as to be parallelto or flush with the front and rear walls of the wall structure.

In order to lock or otherwise maintain the box at its desired adjusted position while installing the same, and to keep it in such relationship after installation, I have provided a slot 6 in one or both of the side walls of one; of the channel elements 3, the other ele ment'carrying a pin or bolt 7 for insertion through said slot and by means of which sliding adjustment may be controlled.

From the foregoing description it is seen that I have constructed a mail box of the kind described, which may be built in the single size, and yet accommodate itself to a wide range of wall thicknesses, thus affording a great saving in time, money and convenience.

Having thus described my invention, it is obvious that various immaterial changes and modifications may be made in the same without departing from the spirit of my invention; hencel do not Wish to be understood as limiting myself to the exact construction, form, arrangement, and combination of parts shown and described. or uses mentioned,'except as limited by the claims.

What I claim as new and desire to. secure by Letters Patent is:

1., A mail box of the kind described, comprising front and rear end members having openings therethrough, and a-pair of channel members slidable relative to one another connecting the same and each pivotally connected at the ends to each of said members.

2. A mail box, comprising front and rear may be installed into Walls of different thicknesses, said connecting means and one of said hollow sections being movable together through an arc of substantially more than 45 relatively of the other section.

3. A mail box of the kind described, comprising front and rear sections through which the mail may be inserted and thence removed, and'a pair of opposed trough-shaped elements connected to said sections to form a conduit and slidable in opposite directions longitudinally of one another to vary the difference in elevation between said sections.

. 4. A mail box, comprising front and rear hollow members,- and a pair of relatively slidable channel sections forming a conduit therebetween, each of said sections being pivoted at both the ends to said members and movable parallel to oneanother while maintaining constant spacing therebetween.

. 5. A mail box of the kind described comprising front and. rear end members having openings therethrough, and a pair of channel members, slid-able relative to one another connecting the same and each movably connected at their endsto each of said members.

6. A mail box of the kind described, com prising front and rear end elements having openings therethrough, and a pair of memhousing.

WILLIAM F. WEMH'OENER.

hollow sections, and means connecting the I same and hinged to each of them and slidable pastv one another to vary the overall depth between said section, so that the same box 

